1. FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a system and components for sorting, carrying and assisting in the delivery of mail or similar materials. In particular, the invention relates to a modular portable mail delivery sorting tray with a movable mail retention gate which can be used to sort the mail and then transport it to a delivery means. Further, the invention particularly relates to the improved system where the delivery means is provided with a plurality of holding means to hold a plurality of the modular trays so that they can be moved by an operator from a storage area within the delivery means to the operator and returned to the storage area.
2. DESCRIPTION OF RELATED ART
The collection distribution and delivery of mail is a complex and labor intensive job. In recent years, the United States Postal System has received competition from special letter messenger services, such as Federal Express, UPS, Purolator, DHL and the like. All of these mail delivery systems are faced with the same problems of collecting the mail, shipping it to the city of destination, and distributing the mail to the ultimate patron. Each of these services are faced with the same problems of sorting the mail for distribution. Finally, each is faced with the problem of having their particular carrier sort and arrange the mail for efficient delivery to the postal patrons. Over the years, many schemes and systems have been suggested or devised for the sorting and distribution of mail at each level. The present invention is directed to a system and components for that system for the final sorting and arrangement of the mail in the most efficient manner for distribution to the postal patrons.
At present, the United States Postal Service has the individual postal delivery person prepare and arrange the mail for final delivery. The postal employee receives mail for the route and then sorts the mail by manually inserting the separate articles of mail into pigeon holes formed within a cabinet. This cabinet is mounted in a fixed location within the post office. Each pigeon hole contains appropriate identifying indicia to denote the particular postal patron. The names of the postal patrons are arranged in an order so that once out on the route, the delivery person may efficiently accomplish mail delivery. Under the present system, it is common to have small parcels and flat mail (magazines, newspapers and the like) sorted separately.
After the mail has been sorted, it is removed from the pigeon holes, wrapped in rubber bands and stacked in order in an unpartitioned plastic bin or delivery tray. These trays are transported to a vehicle and taken out on the delivery route.
The operation of sorting the mail into the pigeon holes is referred to as casing the mail. The standard casing cabinet has several shelves and many dividers. The time necessary for the carrier to "case" the mail by sorting it into the cabinet, rubber banding it and stacking it in order within the undivided bins is all counted in the time of delivery which is a factor considered by the U.S. Postal Service in determining efficiency of both the delivery person and the operating postal system. This present system requires handling the mail many times. In what is called a "checking operation" the mail is sorted and grouped and resorted and resorted and regrouped checking the address each time.
On the route, mail is hand held and fingered or checked through to separate one address from the next. As each group of letters is separated for delivery to the patron, it is necessary to finger through the remaining mail for the group of mail to be delivered to the next patron. Further, it is necessary to search separately through the flat mail consisting of magazines, newspapers and the like to deliver that separately held mail to the postal patron. Under the present system, flat mail is not held with letter mail.
In my own prior invention described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,643,306 (hereinafter '306), a postal tray is described and claimed which is used for both sorting the mail and for delivery to the postal patron. In the invention in my prior patent, the letter mail is sorted directly into the postal tray and the postal tray is carried directly to a vehicle for transportation to the postal patron's location. Mail is removed from its slot in the postal tray and directly delivered to the patron. The postal tray eliminates the need for constant fingering and for rubber banding of the mail. Because of the placement of the mail retention bar in my prior invention, the tray is not adaptable for the handling of both flat mail and letter mail in an integrated system.
A similar system to the system described in my own prior patent, the '306 patent, is described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,885,668 (hereinafter '668). In U.S. Pat. No. '668, removable trays are mounted in the equivalent casing cabinets. Once the mail is sorted the tray is carried to a vehicle and stacked, mail is removed from the tray only for delivery to the patron. The tray as described in U.S. Pat. No. '668 utilizes a band-across-the-top method of holding mail which is inefficient and clumsy allowing mail of smaller than the largest piece in the tray to slide out. These trays are not particularly suitable for an integrated delivery system in which flat and letter mail are handled together. Other sorting cabinets with removable trays have been suggested over the years as taught by U.S. Pat. No. 1,030,317 in which a removable bar across the front of the tray also removes the vertical separators to supposedly facilitate the binding of mail.
Casing cabinets in which the shelves or the cabinets can be raised or lowered to either facilitate the sorting of mail or to enlarge the space needed to sort mail have been suggested by Cobb in U.S. Pat. No. 1,366,401 and by Field in U.S. Pat. No. 806,965.
Talbot in U.S. Pat. No. 1,206,169 described what is essentially a travelling post office. A rural delivery van is equipped with several endless conveyors containing receptacles of several different types. Mail is sorted into the different receptacles depending upon its particular type. Therefore, flat mail, such as magazines, are put in one holder and letter mail in another and packages in yet a third. The carrier rotates the conveyors and removes the appropriate mail from its appropriate bins when at a patrons location. Greene in U.S. Pat. No. 1,204,271 describes a delivery van equipped with bins which slide upon tracks.
A mail delivery system is disclosed in Long, U.S. Pat. No. 1,316,586, which describes a flexible sorting case made out of a fabric material which is hung on a rack in the post office for the casing (sorting) of the mail. After the mail is sorted the flexible holder or case is carried out to a mail delivery vehicle spread out on the appropriate seat and used to assist in the delivery of mail.
Bakken in U.S. Pat. No. 833,110 describes a system wherein mail is sorted into a shelf arrangement. The shelf arrangement contains separators which create individual compartments. When the mail has been sorted into this shelf, the shelf is carried out to the mail delivery vehicle and placed into a holder box. The mail is then delivered from this shelf arrangement to the postal patron.
Reader in two issued U.S. patents and in an abandoned application referred to in at least one of the above-mentioned patents, shows a system and apparatus for delivering mail to gang mail boxes. In U.S. Pat. No. 3,747,752 to Reader, Reader discloses a mail delivery box arrangement is disclosed which receives the sorted mail. The box arrangement is then taken to a gang mail box and inserted into the mail box. When the mail box door is closed each individual compartment of the gang mail box becomes the mail receptacle for a particular patron. Reader in U.S. Pat. No. 3,732,978 shows a cloth version of such a mail distribution systems. In abandoned U.S. application Ser. No. 209,206, filed Dec. 17, 1971, referred to in column 1 of Reader patent '978, a system is disclosed in which the gang mail boxes are removable parts of a cart arrangement. It is anticipated by Reader that the cart would be taken to a office building or apartment complex and mail would be delivered to the patron from the cart.